Coffeeshop Soundtrack
by xXWinterSonataXx
Summary: His heart was as cold as ice, while hers was as warm as his favorite coffee. What happens when you mix the two together? A perfect iced mocha or a complete and utter mess? Pairing finally decided!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh...or "Coffeeshop Soundtrack" by All-Time Low.

* * *

"Hurry Roland, I'm running late," the young CEO snapped irritably at his driver the instant he settled himself in the limousine. Warm, stuffy air blasted at him from the heater, but he was too stressed to even care very much for the dismal weather.

"Yes, sir," his chauffeur answered immediately, starting the car. The shiny limousine drove smoothly down the road, a blur to every vehicle around it. There was no traffic this early in the afternoon and getting to his destination was as quick as he wanted it be.

Abruptly, the car stopped at the corner of a busy sidewalk. "I'll be right back," he barked, getting out of the car and slamming the door behind him. In his high society, slamming a car door was like killing an innocent puppy. But in his agitation, he had no patience for the pointless rules of decorum.

He headed swiftly towards the café door, ignoring the biting cold and drifting snow, and threw it open. The moment he closed the coffee shop door, the warm aroma of roasting beans wafted to his nostrils. Almost immediately, he felt his tense nerves relax and his throbbing headache ease as he headed towards the cashier.

"Hey…what can I get for you today?" the barista asked pleasantly, leaning a lazy hand atop the cash register, breaking the illusion of peace.

"A…." he glanced up at the tan colored boards behind her out of habit. "Mocha cappuccino. Extra hot. To go."

"Anything else?" she asked, punching it into the cash register without looking up at him.

"No," he replied bluntly, handing over his credit card.

"Okay, you can just—"

"Wait there, I know." It had come out a little harsher than he meant, but his cantankerous mood was returning faster than he liked it to. But then again, even if he were in a "better" mood, it would have come out just the same.

Her bright smile faltered into one of innocent confusion, instead of hurt and distress. "Uh, okay." She turned his back to him, and began filling a paper cup with steaming hot coffee.

"Here you go," she handed him the cup quickly, with a mischievous glint in her eye. "Enjoy your…coffee."

He made no acknowledgement towards her as he took it from her, seizing it roughly. But just as his fingers clasped around the hot cup, she left go. It surprised him, and his hand was suddenly gripping a burning hot cup. Instinctively, he dropped it, tipping the cup askew, and spilling the coffee over himself.

She simply laughed.

"I could sue you for all your worth," he glared at her, while searching for something to clean up the mess. She had stopped laughing then and handed him a thick stack of napkins.

"Why waste your time, Mr. Kaiba?" She asked teasingly, leaning forward. She rested her head on her elbows on the high counter, her intoxicating, playfully sweet eyes holding nothing but warmth and vibrance.

He looked up from dabbing his shirt. "I'd like to know what you're going to lose first."

"One of two jobs," she said it as casually as though they were discussing the freezing cold weather. He hid his surprise—he hadn't really expected her to answer. He was too used to vixens playing coy and making him guess for his answers.

She shrugged at his silence, and moved back to the cash register where an impatient line was forming. "And every chance to work at another coffee shop. Stains the reputation, you know? Anyway, while you're making up your mind, give me a second and I'll make another one for you."

"No, I think I'll try the other café across the street," he said coldly, heading out the door.

"Hm, okay! Have fun!" She called brightly after him, before taking an order from a cross man. He threw a nasty look behind his shoulder, before stopping abruptly and turning to face her.

"Excuse me?"

"Well, I figured that the best way to do anything is to do it with enjoyment so—"

"What kind of person do you think I am?" he interrupted, cutting her off sharply.

At this, the girl paused from taking an order and smiled, in a way that was beyond sincere and genuine. "I don't know you well enough, Seto Kaiba, and I don't think the tabloids do you justice. I can't answer that question. Three-fifty please, sir."

Again and again, she triumphed over him in her selection of words. He felt a rising fury that this impudent barista thought she was better than he.

"You know what, I'll take you up on that offer," he walked briskly up the counter, cutting the line, as she began the man's espresso.

"You want a coffee?" her expression showed mock disbelief as she handed the man his coffee with a sleeved cup, who slouched off with an impertinent "huff". "Really?"

His ice blue eyes narrowed again. He had had just about enough of her cheekiness. The urge to squash this girl's confidence was overwhelming, and it only grew more so when he found her grinning knowingly that she had won. After all, was it not Seto Kaiba's job to trample every idiot's ego?

But time was of the essence. And he really did need to get back to work.

"Why is that to so hard to believe?" he snapped angrily. "Give me my damn coffee. I'm late for a meeting."

"Touchy touchy," she muttered under her breath as she began another mocha cappuccino. Within seconds, she'd finished, handing it to him swiftly, this time, with a coffee sleeve around it to prevent him from burning his hand.

And he didn't drop it this time.

"Have a nice day!" she called out over the counter pleasantly, as if all that had happened between them was nothing more than two long lost friends reuniting together for the first time. He looked back at her incredulously, unbelievably. How had she done it? Treated him like crap one second, and then the next like a friend. There was no way in hell that she had just done that to him.

But what happened next astonished him even more. She looked up from the busy line of disgruntled caffeine addicted people, catching his eye. She smiled another playfully sincere and knowing smile, one that even took away the breath that he was going to use to insult her. Instead, he sent her a icy glare and pushed open the door, the image of her last expression still fresh in his mind.

There are just things you don't forget.

* * *

Please tell me what you think about this one! I'm not even too sure whether or not it's a one-shot or a story. Crap, I'm so nervous about this one, almost to the point where I'm just a tad bit scared. Should I continue? I've just set up a poll on my homepage about the future of this story. Anyhow, thanks so much for taking the time to read this :) You totally made my day!


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh.

Thanks a bunch to **potter-me-**, **JustJos16**, and **dancers of the night** for all their help. i seriously appreciate it! :)

* * *

Days went by before he went back to that godforsaken coffee shop again, even against his own deepest wishes to return and banish that impudent girl to the dirt where she belonged. Instead, he took as much comfort as he could in the fact that he'd done as he'd last threatened and gone to another coffee shop. So what if their coffee wasn't as great as the one _she_'d made for him and the baristas weren't as spirited and unpredictable as _she_ was? As long as he was far away from _her_, he'd be quite fine.

_Strange_, he mused dryly to himself, as he opened the door to another more popular café in downtown Domino for his daily coffee break. _I didn't even bother to look for her name._

Still, as time went by, he forced himself to push the thought of _her_ away from his mind. Her sweet smile became nothing more than a wisp of a memory and her melodic laugh a long forgotten part of a terrifying nightmare. Life took up its normal pace again, with long, stressful hours and cocky, rich imbeciles who tried to take over his company.

Life was good.

But even if she never crossed his mind as much as before, it still took a while to accept the fact that she had bested him. _It's not that I don't have the balls to go back_, he told himself firmly. _It's that I don't want to see her irritating, stupid face again. _

And now, exactly one week and a half later, with his balls and pride fully intact, he pushed open the forbidden coffee shop door.

* * *

"Why the hell did you do that anyway?"

"Do what, Mai?" asked the ebony haired girl as she gathered bits of trash from various places around the café. It was almost closing time and the little coffee shop was nearly empty, save for the last barista and the blonde sitting on one of the high stools watching her friend clean the shop. "I've done a lot of things."

"That _thing_. Remember?"

"Nope," she answered cheerfully, dumping all of the trash into the nearest garbage can. "What did I do this time?"

"You were tormenting that poor man."

"You mean that guy from a week and a half ago?" Her thoughts turned back to that mysterious and aloof man. Seto Kaiba, his credit card and reaction to his name had identified him as. A fabulously rich and uncommonly lucky man in the gene area he was too. Ever since their strange encounter, he had been in her thoughts, and she had absolutely intention of forgetting.

"No—What? What did you do?"

"Nothing. Go on. Who were you talking about?" she asked quickly, changing the subject as she took off her apron and hung it inside the back kitchen.

"Tristan Taylor, Lorraine. I saw him yesterday and he's about to drown in depression." Mai gazed at her friend sternly as she walked back out. "Not that I feel too much pity for him myself, but really, don't you think you went a bit overboard?"

"Did Joey tell you this?" she sighed impatiently. "Please, Mai. He'll be fine. He's like a trampoline or one of those Slinky thingies. He'll bounce back in no time."

"Lorraine." Mai rolled her eyes. "I'm pretty sure he's not _that_ flexible."

"And then again," Lorraine popped her head over the counter to grin at her friend, "he just might be!"

"I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon." Mai drank her coffee, before setting it down and then going on again. "You really hurt him, you know, by turning him down, especially when you thought it was a stupid prank and insulted him."

Lorraine blew a strand of hair out of her face. "I didn't believe because I didn't want to. I mean, come on! What would you have done, Mai? He didn't even do it in person!"

Mai sighed, exasperated, and decided to drop the subject of her friend's inadequate reaction to a guy who had proclaimed his undying love for her, through a text message and sent it. "Well then, will you hurry up? We'll miss Tea's engagement party."

"Yeah, once I'm done with this, then—"

The opening door cut her off. Both heads shot towards the exit, wondering who could possibly be coming to get their caffeine at this late hour. So it was only six-fifty...it was still ten minutes to closing.

"How can I help—oh, it's you." Lorraine sent the customer a weary, yet kind smile, running an exhausted hand through her long hair. "What do you want?"

"I'm glad to see you have good memory," the tall man said sarcastically, disregarding her last sentence and shutting the door not too gently behind him.

"Oh...yeah." she looked down sheepishly, before turning to her friend. "Mai, I'm only going to take a few minutes, just wait for me in the car. I'll be there. You have Tea's gift right?"

"Yes. Hurry up, or I'm leaving without you." Mai tossed her empty cup into the trash. She twirled her car keys around her finger before stalking off an, without even a second look to the handsomely cold man before her.

"So...what do you want today?" Lorraine rephrased her question as she gave all her attention to the tall, blue-eyed man. God...he was more fantastic than she had remembered, with his tall, well-built frame, soft brown tousled hair, and intimidating ice-cold blue eyes...eyes that seemed to stare into your soul and find nothing of value within.

_A funny description, _she laughed inwardly at herself. _But a true one, nonetheless._

He leaned forward on the counter, his spicy, intoxicating cologne nearly driving her crazy. She hadn't paid this much attention to him last time, but then again, _last_ time she'd been too busy causing him misery to pay attention to his physical aspects.

"Why don't you surprise me?" he requested coldly, holding her gaze steadily in his intense eyes. "You're quite good at that."

She flushed, gathering her dark hair to a side. "I know I am. And since it's my talent, tonight's is on the house."

"You mean on your paycheck," he corrected her swiftly. "And why would you do that?"

"Do you not like being stunned?" she tilted her head slightly. "And anyway, just stop complaining and it's on me." She gave him one last fleeting smile, before turning her back on him and beginning his "surprise".

"Poisonous toxin in my coffee is going to be your surprise, isn't it?" he asked warily. "That is very—"

"Predictable?" she asked, still adding this and that to his coffee cup. "Mr. Kaiba, you are a very smart man, don't you know the definition of surprise?"

"Above all, I'm a duelist," he shot at her back coldly. "And anticipating traps is a needed skill."

Her expression softened, as she passed the coffee across the counter between the two cash registers to him, a smile of mild confusion and sadness on her face. "Is everything a game to you?"

"Life's the cruelest game of all. But I intend to win it."

She looked down at her shoes, before meeting his cold eyes again. There was the slightest hint of sadness in her eyes. "This is the most you opened up to anyone isn't it?" she asked softly, breaking the awkward silence.

He laughed cruelly. "Opened up? Hardly. Everyone knows that about me. Couldn't you even infer _that_ about me, even through the tabloid trash you say you don't believe?"

She was silent, crossing her arms across her small frame. "Just making sure...wouldn't want the Seto Kaiba to become a saint, now would we?" she finally said, before changing the subject and gesturing towards the innocent cup of coffee. "So are you going to drink that or not?"

He glanced at it as though it were going to explode. "Not on my life."

"But you asked for a surprise...and I gave you one. Plus, you've drank one of my drinks before, and here you are, standing in the same place and in the same perfect condition as one week and a half ago," she reminded him. He smirked.

"True. But it seems that trusting you always seems to be the worst decision I ever make."

She laughed, as she moved from her spot to the back kitchen. "I have to lock up the shop now, Mr. Kaiba. You can either drink that or toss it, your choice. But my friend is waiting for me in the car and I hate to make her wait any longer."

He raised an eyebrow, as she re-emerged with a puffy black jacket in her arms. "She'll have to wait."

She paused. "It this revenge for making you late last time?" she asked quizzically, walking out from the counter and flipping off the lights. "Because that was totally and completely unintentional."

His ice-cold blue eyes narrowed. "Of course it was. Just like how unintentional it is for me to keep you waiting here right now."

"You're not busy?" she asked curiously, staring at him. "Well, if you've got so much time, why don't you drink that?" she smirked, striding towards the door and pushing it open, gesturing for him to walk out into the cold. "I thought we were over that whole 'I don't trust you' bump."

"You were. Not I," he replied, as he walked past her outside.

She gave him a small smile. "For me then, drink it for me. As a present."

He raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"Please? I hate to see worthwhile things go to waste. Please drink it," she said, smiling sincerely into his eyes. Steadily, he raised the cup to his lips and took a small sip. He suddenly stopped and uncapped it, staring at the steaming liquid, before looking back at her.

"What's in this?"

She beamed happily, pleased that he hadn't spit it out completely in disgust.

"Peppermint. Happy holidays, Mr. Kaiba."

* * *

**Author's Note: **In the end, I decided a SetoxOC story would be most appropriate, because I didn't know if I could pull off having Serenity and Tea being so out of character. Too bad, because I was hoping for a canon pairing myself. However, if you still feel otherwise, please tell me! Another story based on the first chapter can always be written :)

I wanted this up before my last day of school so I'd have some surprises of my own to look forward to when I get home :) If there are any mistakes, I apologize! But thank you very much for reading! It really makes my day :D


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh.

Thanks to **potter-me- **again for all her help!

* * *

It was early evening. As usual, Seto Kaiba sat in his office, furiously typing away at his computer keyboard, working on another brand new program for KaibaCorp. He leaned back in his chair, rubbing his sore temples. Everything seemed in order. The new program was working flawlessly. It was hard to believe, though not anymore for him, that not two weeks ago it had been a pile of useless combination of codes written by the idiots he himself had hired.

But, as always, in the end, all of the efforts he had put into them had been worth it. And even by his high standards, today had been a good day. It deserved a good ending.

"Roland, meet me at the main entrance in five minutes," he barked into his phone. He snapped it shut, turned off the computer, and got up from the desk while throwing on his coat in a single swift movement.

"Misako, I'm leaving," he announced to his secretary, as he closed his office door behind him. "You may leave as well, whenever you wish."

"Yes, Mr. Kaiba. Thank you, Mr. Kaiba!" the timid secretary grinned ecstatically. Rarely was she let out from the office on time, but she certainly was not questioning this rare miracle.

He strode out of the second door, and headed towards the cylindrical glass elevator. Various workers passed by, giving their boss a greeting, each of them shocked that their boss was leaving the on time, but he barely acknowledged them as he stepped out of the building and into the cool, fresh air.

"Destination, Mr. Kaiba?" the driver asked as Seto slammed the car door shut.

"The coffee shop."

"The one downtown, Mr. Kaiba?"

"No, the one only a few blocks from here," he said, as though it were obvious. His driver nodded and the car drove down the road. He felt himself relax, though he was sitting in the most rigid position possible. Before he knew it, the car had halted to a stop in front of the little coffee shop. He got out, shut the door behind him, and walked straight to the coffee shop door, pushing it open.

Once inside, it was the warm familiar aroma of roasting coffee beans reached him first. His blue irises quickly scanned the shop, looking for the familiar long black hair and playful brown eyes.

But she was not there behind the high counter.

"Can I help you?" Another barista asked, as she poked her head over the counter, smiling a little too helpfully.

"No," he replied shortly, instantly turning around and heading out of the shop, and slamming the door behind him none too gently. The limo was still idling there, with it's surprised driver.

"What happened, Mr. Kaiba?"

"Nothing. Return home. Mokuba is waiting."

"Mr. Kaiba…" Roland hesitated. "Your brother just called to remind you that both of you have a business dinner tonight with the Hanson brothers and the Hyogo family. Your brother—"

"I didn't forget," he replied coolly, though truthfully, he had. The program had done a successful job in return for him by blocking out the world. "Go there now, or we'll be late."

"Yes, Mr. Kaiba," his loyal driver responded as the car started and turned in the opposite direction. As they neared the restaurant, Seto felt his displeasure growing. What a terrible way to end his day, especially with idiotic morons and their air-headed companions.

It was not too long before Seto Kaiba was forced to get out of his car again, and hurry towards the large, grand entrance of the five-star restaurant. He was irritated, that it was a stupid dinner party that was going to be wasting his time. His brother was already outside, waiting for him.

"You're late, Seto," his brother, Mokuba, whispered anxiously to him as he came up to him. "Those nimwits have been waiting for you to show up!"

"They can wait a little longer," said Seto, as the doorman opened the doors for them.

"Mr. Kaiba!" an overly eager business man bumbled over, clasping hands with the tall, young CEO. "Good to see you! Afraid you weren't going to make it!"

"But in the end, I did," he replied, keeping faint distaste out of his expression.

"It's wonderful that you could make it," another woman smiled benignly, trying to get into the conversation. "Mokuba here was just telling us how busy you were!"

He turned to glare down at his brother, but fortunately, he was saved from speaking next. The hostess had come back, and now, she gestured for their party to follow her through the dimly lit restaurant. She brought them to a large table, one that had just enough places for all of them to take their seats.

"Your server will be out shortly," she promised, as she handed them their menus. "In the meantime, would you like to order some drinks?"

Mr. Hyogo looked around at the people at his table. "Champagne?" When they nodded, he verified his order. "Champagne, please." She nodded and walked away to retrieve their drinks.

"Any idea of what you're going to get, Mr. Kaiba?" one of the Hanson brothers, Sam, asked, perhaps eagerly hoping for a chance to mimic the blue-eyed man in front of him.

"No," Seto answered curtly, finally opening the menu and looking inside. Nothing appealed to him.

Sam tried again. "Anything you suggest? I've heard your taste in food is quite impeccable."

"You flatter me." Though it was clear in Sete's face that he did not.

Out of the corner of his eye, Seto saw the man falter, feeling pleased that he'd finally left him alone...for the time being. Let the dessert course roll around, and he'd be back with more questions.

"Hello, my name is Lorraine and I'll be your server for the evening." As promised, the waitress was with them quickly, ready to take their orders. "Are you ready to order?"

Seto looked up in surprise at the voice. The waitress...it couldn't be, could it? He was staring into the face that he'd been looking forward to annoying all afternoon. It was _her_, standing in front of him, waiting to take their order.

What was she doing here? He didn't believe that she worked here. How was it possible, that she was everywhere he went? Was she some sort of witch? But witches didn't exist so that option was simply inconcievable. What about—

Suddenly, something clicked in his mind, something so obvious that he couldn't believe he didn't realize it before. What if she was working for someone, someone who wanted him to be gone or spread things about him? It was the only plausible explanation, the only one that made sense. It explained everything, why she seemed to know him so well, why she was everywhere that he was, and why she knew how to counter his attacks so well. She had to be trying to gather information about him...for some_thing_ or some_one_. This had to be what she was doing. There could be no other believable reason for her actions.

"Excuse me, Mr. Kaiba, what would you like?"

_Your head on a platter and your body barbecued to perfection._

"The special," he said icily, slamming the thick menu down askew on her hands, atop all the rest of the large menus.

"How would you like your steak?" she asked, struggling to carry all of the big menus.

_Extra rare_.

"Medium rare."

"Alright, thank you very much! Your appetizers will be out shortly," she assured them, before leaving the table as well to serve the other guests.

"She was a pretty thing, wasn't she?" Mr. Niigata asked to his wife, who looked appalled in response.

"She absolutely was not. Was she, Mr. Kaiba?" she directed her attention towards Seto, who barely responded physically.

"I didn't notice," he replied coolly, as another waiter brought their drinks, setting down the glasses of water and bottles of champagne quite swiftly without spilling.

The next hour and a half passed uneventfully, with the men boasting their latest business scams and showing off their buxom prizes. Neither Seto nor Mokuba spoke much; they were men of honor. He would never deign so low as to brag about his success while drunk on champagne nor put a lady up on a pedestal to be gawked and stared upon by the gazes of lustful men. All that was required of him was to nod in response and pretend to be listening.

But before the desserts arrived, he had had enough. He excused himself from the table, citing a vibrating phone as his excuse as Mokuba looked on in exasperation. But instead of heading outside to take his phone call, he walked through the vast restaurant, looking for that one waitress, though almost in vain. He finally cornered her in the kitchens, surprising her as she walked out of the swinging doors.

"Mr. Kaiba! What are you doing here?" she asked, as she dodged around him, but unsuccessfully. He blocked her from moving, cornering her against the wall.

"I could ask you the same question," he said coldly, glaring her down with his ice blue eyes.

"I work here."

"A likely story. Tell me another lie, _Lorraine_," he hissed her name venomously. "What do you think you're playing at?"

"Kaiba..." she spoke his last name informally, not understanding where his anger came from, but there was a pleading in her eyes. "Please...please, don't—"

"Don't what?"

"Kaiba, please, I need this job. Please don't blow it for me," she begged.

"Blow it for you? I've already blown it for you. Your cover is gone and you just admitted it yourself."

"Kaiba, please...don't—what have I ever done to you?"

"Are you really asking me that question?" he snarled angrily. "How about invasion of privacy?"

"What?" Her eyebrows furrowed. "When have I ever done that?"

"Don't you find it strange, _Lorraine_," he spat out her name with as much venom in poison. "That you just happen to be everywhere that I am?"

"Well no, not exactly, I've met lots of people where I work," she said, confused.

"You meet people, or you follow them?" he asked sarastically, still glaring at her.

"Well, in one job, I make coffee and the other I—wait, my job as a waitress or my job as a barista?" she asked rather stupidly, he felt. "Because I don't meet or follow people in either of those!"

"Your job as a stalker paparazzi."

"You think the fact that I show up wherever you are is intentional?" she asked, finally realizing what he was talking about. "Is this what you're mad about?"

"Mad? Mad doesn't cover it, I am furious," he corrected her icily. "But you know, you are without doubt the worst stalker I have ever seen."

She laughed uncomfortably. "Because I'm not a stalker."

"Liar."

She looked down, black hair covering her face. "Remember the first time we met and I told you I had two jobs? This is my second job. I need it to pay through school. I'm graduating soon."

"School for what? Failures at life?"

"Domino University. I'm working for a Master's in Business and I need the money that comes from this job. And I don't need you ruining my future for me," she glared at him angrily, pushing him away. "Excuse me."

And with that, she stomped away, leaving him in her wake. After regaining his sense, he strode coolly out of the restaurant, pushing people out of his way until he was outside, in the cool, night air, but it did nothing to calm his frustration? Anger? He had no idea even what his emotions were. Instinctively, he dialed Roland, instructing him to pick him up by the restaurant immediately. While he waited, he reflected on what had just happened and it was beyond infuriating. But it no longer bothered him that she surprised him so often.

What bothered him was that she didn't even try.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Gah...I think it turned out okay...not the best, but okay. I had a total writer's block on how to continue and I wasn't sure. Maybe I'll rewrite the chapter or something...I really need some ideas, and at this point, I'm open to anything! :)

Once again, a giant thanks for reading! I will get to the next chapter as soon as I can. After being stuck in ancient Egypt mode for so long, it's so refreshing to write something based in the twenty-first century :P Thanks for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh.

All my thanks to **Sakura Takanouchi**,** Journey Maker**,** JustJos16**,** potter-me-**,** dancers of the night**,** codeblueeyes987**,,and **Lady-Wicca666** for their reviews so far. It's a short list but it makes me super happy that people somewhat like my stab at a Seto fic.

Well, enjoy!

* * *

Saturdays…Saturdays were the most unsocial days of Lorraine's week. Saturdays were the days that she grudgingly cleaned up the mess that had accumulated throughout the week in her tiny ground level studio apartment, before studying until her head exploded and then getting ready for whatever shift she was taking on that night.

Except this Saturday. _This_ Saturday, she was in Tea's fabulous top floor penthouse apartment living room with Serenity and Mai, helping to work out Tea's wedding plans.

Though the work was frightfully dull, at least the view was fantastic.

"Tea…is the list supposed to be this long?" Lorraine asked, squinting at the tiny font on the four-page guest list.

"It was three and a half until my mother got to it," Tea glanced at it briefly, before turning the computer screen to show Mai samples of dress fabrics. "But really,it's not going to be that long. The ones with a red dot next to them have to be invited, and yellow are completely optional. Yuugi and I will decide on them later. The green are somewhat in between. Could you make a list of the red and greens for me? See, Mai, I was thinking…"

"Sure," Lorraine said, as she pulled out her own laptop, arranging it comfortably on her lap as she sat cross-legged on the couch. "Were you planning on sending them to a printer or calligrapher?"

"Depends on the card styles we end up picking today," Tea answered. "Which do you think?"

"I say pick the cheaper one."

"Lorrie!"

"What?"

"Even though I don't want my wedding to be extremely expensive, it's not going to be that cheap either!" The bride-to-be rolled her eyes. "It's got to have at least a little style!"

"You wanna know what mine's is going to be like?"

"I think I'm going to regret listening," said Mai, rolling her eyes, but she laughed.

"I'm going to City Hall and getting a marriage certificate!" the black haired girl announced cheerfully, as though it were the best thing in the world.

"Don't we all do that?" Serenity called from the kitchen. "It's not really memorable..."

"Exactly, Lorrie," Mai smirked at her friend. "That's why the rest of us would like to celebrate the best moments of our life with a memorable day."

"If getting there is half the fun, then that's all I need," Lorraine countered, grinning. "I can actually afford it too, Mai!"

Tea laughed at her bickering friends. "Alright, Lorraine, on your marriage day, we're going to take you to City Hall in a recyclable cardboard box pulled by Joey and Tristan. Happy? God forbid that you spend more than five hundred dollars on that day and that your future husband suddenly consider divorce."

"Now see, _that's _memorable," Lorraine grinned broadly, before looking back down onto her computer screen and clicking open Excel. "I don't think anyone's going to forget that!"

"Affirmative," agreed Mai. "Is your laptop working yet?"

"Negative. It was a top of the line laptop three years ago, so...obviously, it takes a while to start up," she replied, making a face. She needed a new laptop. She really did. But where does one find enough money for that? It doesn't just fall out of the sky like rain.

While she waited for the program to open, she flipped through the list once more, skimming the list for the famous people she looked for, except that one she hadn't seen before caught her eye.

"Mokuba and Seto Kaiba? You invited the Kaiba brothers?"

"Oh, them? Yeah...Yuugi and I decided that we would be the better people and just bury the hatchet. Mokuba's quite nice actually. He's been very supportive of my dancing," Tea explained, still scrolling through dress designs.

"And it would be rude to invite one family member but not the other, Lorrie," said Serenity gently, as she came back form the kitchen with a mug in her hands. She set it down on the coffee table gently, sitting down cross-legged on the floor to pool through catering and flower options.

Lorraine sighed, feeling a little more than stupid. "Smart, as always. I never expect anything less."

"Did you have something against them?" Serenity asked curiously. "Have you even met them before?"

Immediately, Lorraine flashed back on the horrible incident at the restaurant a few weeks ago, something she had yet to forget and move on from. Ever since that day, she hadn't seen the man with the cold blue eyes and it made her quite happy that he never showed up anymore. "Which one, Mokuba or Seto?"

"Whichever one bothers you."

"None of them bother me, I was just wondering why Tea would invite them to her wedding, that's all. When we were in college, she used to tell me the stories of all the adventures you guys used to have. They were all so cool!" Lorraine exclaimed hurriedly, hastily trying to change the subject to more safer waters.

"So...was Battle City scary?"

* * *

"Mr. Kaiba, your mail has arrived." His timid secretary tapped lightly on the door before pushing it open gently with her fingertips.

"You may set it down on my desk."

"Yes, sir," she answered, placing them down carefully on the table and then backing away and nearly dashing out the door.

By now, he was used to her easily frightened nature and paid no attention to it. As long as she did exactly what he told her and got it right the first time in record time, he had no complaints.

Once she was gone, he reached for his mail, sorting them into piles from least to most important. It was a moot task—all of them found themselves tossed rather carelessly into the far corner of his desk.

Except for one thick, cream-colored envelope with his name written in clear, golden calligraphy. He slit it open carefully, slipping out a white invitation, a slip of paper with check boxes on it, and a smaller, pre-stamped envelope.

Though he already had a hunch to what it was, he opened the card quickly, glancing briefly at its shiny golden inscriptions.

Suddenly, he flung the invitation into a drawer and slammed it shut.

* * *

"Your wedding is only two weeks away!" Lorraine exclaimed excitedly, as she and Tea entered one of Domino's largest malls.

"I know," Tea grinned back happily, running a weary hand through her long hair. "I think I'm about explode from all the planning."

"Ha, I feel like that everyday. I just can't wait to pick up your dresses. What do they look like?" she asked eagerly, staring up the high ceiling at all the spiral floors.

"Well, you'll see once you get them, won't you?" Tea was obviously in no mood to be disclosing secrets. "But they're so beautiful and Mai helped me pick them."

"Are we picking out your wedding gown today too?" Lorraine asked, as they headed for the escalator.

"No, it's being sent to my house," said Tea. "Something about not wanting to have too many people touching it."

"Speaking of people," Lorraine remarked, as they stepped off of the escalator. "How many did you invite to your wedding?"

"About one eighty, around," she shrugged, suddenly stopping in front of a designer bag store. "That is so cute! Can we see that?"

"I guess so," Lorraine replied, as she followed Tea into the store. "What about the Kaiba brothers?"

"What about them?" Tea asked distractedly, gazing at the leather bags with interest.

"Are they coming?"

"You still remember?" Tea looked up in surprise, her expression becoming clouded. "Both are coming. They R.S.V.P.-ed just yesterday."

"Oh. Wonderful."

"You don't have a problem with them, do you? I don't think you told Serenity the full truth."

"Not really," Lorraine answered hesitantly. "Mokuba seems very nice. He must be better than his brother."

"You mean Seto Kaiba? What has he ever done to you?" Tea turned around curiously to face her friend. "You haven't met before, have you?"

"He came to the coffee shop a couple of times and we talked…I poured coffee on him actually. And then he showed up at the restaurant and when he saw me, cornered me and accused me of stalking him for paparazzi and money." She summed up the out of the ordinary confrontations rather truthfully, leaving Tea shell-shocked.

"You poured coffee on a Kaiba? Really?" Tea dragged her out of the store and back into the brightly lit mall. "Lorraine Koyamada, you never cease to amaze me."

"Yes, I know. He's quite paranoid, don't you think?" Lorraine asked, skipping the question of clarification.

Tea hesitated a bit too long before replying. "Paranoid…but brilliant. He just takes his privacy really seriously, that's all."

"I had no idea you held so much pity for him," Lorraine remarked. "I would've labeled him as…psychotic."

Tea laughed. "I told you all the stories that we had, didn't I? All of the things that he did and everything."

"You left out many details and portrayed him in a pretty bad light. And now you say he's not so bad?"

"That was then, and this is now, Lorrie. People change." Tea had truth in her words, but it was not convincing enough. Seto Kaiba did not just change for anybody or anything.

"And he changed just for…"

Tea blushed crimson. "Not for me, if that's what you're thinking!"

"Yes. Of course not for you. Because if he had, you would be marrying _him_ instead of—"

"Don't finish that sentence. I will personally kill you."

"Yes, ma'am."

* * *

**Author's Note: **I was totally distracted by America's Best Dance Crew while writing this (GO WEST COAST! :D) but I think did my best :D Please leave a comment and tell me what you thought!

Okay. Off to more ABDC :)


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh.

I didn't have much time to reply reviews to people due to packing for vacation, so my responses are at the end. Please enjoy!

* * *

"Tea, the dress looked fantastic in the case, but it looks so much more beautiful on you," Serenity praised, smiling at the stunning bride.

The gown was an ivory colored, one-shouldered gown with crystal brooches clipping the thin strip of fabric across her left shoulder to the dress. The silky material flowed down Tea's body, the train just barely skimming the floor as she moved. It was perfect for her outdoor wedding.

"She's right. You did pick out a really nice dress," Lorraine agreed, as she helped Tea put on her tiara and attach the wispy veil to her freshly curled hair. "It's almost like it's out of a fantasy!"

"And that's exactly why Mai and I picked it out," Tea turned away from the mirror, smiling a bright, broad smile at her friends, who were dressed in various styles of dresses in light lavender. "All of you look beautiful too."

"Of course we do," Mai laughed, pushing open the door to the dressing room. "We have to, Tea. You ready?"

"Almost." Tea bit her lip nervously, slightly smudging her pale pink lipstick. She wore almost no make-up, letting her own, natural beauty shine through.

"Everything is going to be fine," Lorraine stepped forward, taking Tea's slim hands in her own and smiling comfortingly. "You are going to make it down the aisle, get married to the man of your dreams, and then we're going to dance on the beach like there's no tomorrow!"

"Right." Tea grinned back, before faltering slightly. "How do I look?"

Lorraine leaned forward, giving her friend a light kiss and a quick hug. "Beautiful! Yuugi's going to faint when he sees you."

"Don't exaggerate! Tell the—"

"Hon, we've gotta go!" Mai pushed the bride out of the room hastily. "Everyone's waiting!"

* * *

It was barely late afternoon when the guests of Tea Gardner and Yuugi Motou's wedding began arriving at Domino Pier for their wedding. Security had been tight, checking and re-checking invitations for authenticity, making sure no one unwanted crashed the wedding.

Seto and Mokuba Kaiba were among the attendees, one more eager than the other to watch the ceremony. They had arrived neither late nor early, and were now sitting way off to the side of the seats set out for the guests, much to Mokuba's annoyance.

"Seto, we can't see _crap_ from this side of the place," he complained. "Look, there are empty seats closer to that side, why don't we go over there?"

'I'm quite fine over here, Mokuba."

"Yeah, but we can't see anything but that guy's enormous head…and now the back of a fat lady. Big brother—"

"Mokuba, this wedding will be over before it's even begun. I'm sure you can wait that long."

"Big brother, I thought we came so we could actually _see_ the bride and groom," he pointed out, "not various body parts of guests."

"You know what Mokuba, if it bothers you that much, why don't you just leave and go sit wherever you want. I don't want to have to listen to your complaints all day."

"_Thank_ you!" he nearly exploded, running off to find a seat with a better view of the aisle without missing a beat. Seto watched with dry amusement as his brother scanned the area and artfully picked a seat next to the computer geek Rebecca Hawkins and her aging grandfather.

Seto looked away from his brother, and focused on the setting that he was in. Tea and Yuugi had picked a rather peculiar place for their wedding, a pier only a few docks down from where Yuugi and Joey had had their duel years ago. Nostalgia picked at him, when he remembered what had happened that day, but he ignored it and looked at what was around him in the present. Thick ribbons of white were woven through the wooden railings of the pier, finally coming together in a large bow at the front, where a canopy was being suspended. Between the two rows of seats was a narrow red carpet, reaching from one end of the pier to the back.

The hundred and eighty seats filled quickly with people, each one taking their seats with high expectations for the wedding. The location had already astounded them and none of them could wait to see the bride and groom.

Finally, the music started, and the quiet murmur of chatter instantly quieted. The families of the bride and groom took their honored seats with much dignity and pride. Yuugi, dressed elegantly in a black, took his place in front and gazed towards the back of the aisle, awaiting his bride.

Seto didn't pay much attention to what followed after that. He had only one thought in his mind, as he watched the bridesmaids walk down the aisle, escorted by their groomsmen. In his distraction, he dimly noticed that the crafty barista/waitress was one of the bridesmaids. Obviously, she hadn't heeded his anger and warnings. He made a mental note to trouble her later about the stalking issue once the ceremonies were over.

At long last, the bride came down the aisle in all her breathtaking glory. His eyes never left her slim, beautiful figure as she gently treaded down the aisle in her sparkling dress and puffy, wispy veil. Jealousy and anger burned through him as he watched Yuugi take her small hand gently in his own, leaning forward and whispering something in her ear.

_She doesn't deserve him_, he thought angrily to himself, his ice blue eyes scrutinizing the couple harshly as they spoke their vows to each other, love saturating their every word.

_But does she deserve you?_

That was a question that after four years was yet to be answered. It was a question who's answer he thought was clear and plain when they had dated, until he made the selfish decision that his life could not sustain a woman in it. She had been devastated, obviously, and had run to the man she was now marrying for comfort. It was something he would never understand.

Because really, what did Yuugi Motou have that the Seto Kaiba, world famous CEO of Kaiba Corporation lacked? What was the one thing that Yuugi had that fate decided Seto Kaiba was better off without?

It was inconceivable.

But before he could come up with a plausible solution, the wedding was over. Both the bride and groom leaned in for a passionate kiss, bringing tears to the guests' eyes but even more fury to his. As they all applauded, happy for them, the monster inside him roared with disapproval at the match. But he had too much pride to give in to his selfish desires. All he could do was sit tight and wait for the horrendousness to be over.

And he didn't have to wait long. Yuugi and Tea soon ran towards the reception area, where the crowd soon followed them. He walked rather half heartedly, being one of the last to leave his seat.

The reception was being held at one of the restaurants close to the pier and on the beach. The dining area was on the large mahogany veranda of the restaurant, where all the tables and everything had already been set up. Lanterns hung around the ceiling, illuminating the darkness as it set in. There were steps that lead to the beach, and a place for dancing was near it's steps. A DJ was already there, blasting out music from his large speakers, inviting people to let out their inhibitions to his beat.

"Didn't think you would actually show up." A dry, sarcastic voice pulled him out of his mind. He turned around in his seat to face it.

"And not see your friend on her most glorious day?" he said, with heavy derision. "That would be a pity, wouldn't it, Miss Koyamada?"

"You can actually _feel_ pity, Kaiba?" She sent him a withering look, before plopping herself into the seat next to him, disregarding the fact that the chair was for a Jennie Somogyi.

"Did you think I was not human?" he replied coolly, irritated that she had not addressed him properly.

"You had me convinced you were something else entirely," she replied, propping her elbow on the white tablecloth and leaning her head on it, gazing at him at an angle.

"So what have you come here for? To stalk me some more?" he changed the subject abruptly, finding pleasure in her disappointed expression.

"Can we ever get one conversation without you thinking that I'm talking to you to get something out of it for myself?" she asked coldly. "Why do you think I'm so low?"

"Prove to me that you are not."

She glared at him. "I don't have to prove anything to a man with a closed mind. It would be like handing a gun to a man who doesn't believe in murdering others."

"Closed mind? I'll open it once you show decent proof."

"And I'll never have enough of it because you'll never believe me!"

He smirked at her this time. "And how would you know, Lorraine?"

"Oh, we're on first names terms now, _Seto_?" he could see the slipping of self-control in her eyes, as she glared at him with intense hate. The inner struggle was plain in her dark eyes. Finally, she had shown a crack in her well-woven armor! He leaned in close, until their faces were centimeters apart.

"And why not, Lorraine?"

Her eyes suddenly lost their furious intensity and sparkled. Abruptly, she threw back her head, laughing. "Seto Kaiba, you amuse me so much."

Irritation irked him again, as he leaned back and studied her through his icy blue orbs. Just when he thought he had figured her out, she flicked off the lights and left him in the dark once again.

After all, who the hell laughs at something like _that_?

He suddenly looked up, catching the eye of a certain someone. She stared back at him meaningfully and tilted her head slightly to the right, towards the outside entrance of the restaurant.

"See someone?" Lorraine asked coolly, not missing the exchange.

"No," he answered curtly. "I suddenly feel need to use the restroom."

"Why don't you just say 'I need to go the bathroom?'" Lorraine muttered. "It's the exact same thing, _and_ even a stupid idiot can understand it."

"Fine. I need to take a piss. Does that satisfy you?"

"Oh, so much. See you later, Seto," she smirked, getting up from the table first. "I wouldn't want to bother you on your private rendezvous."

His retort died on his lips before she could hear it, as she quickly strode out of earshot and towards the table where her friends sat. But still, he ignored it. Quickly and inconspicuously, he rose from the table and headed towards the entrance of the restaurant, where the normal diners were eating their meal pleasantly. He walked up quickly up the stairs, to where the private dining rooms and restrooms were. Once in the narrow hallway, Seto sat himself down on one of the wooden benches, waiting.

"No, no, I can pee myself. Yes!...What?...No! Go away! _God_…" he heard the last word being muttered, and raised his attention towards the back stairs, his heartbeat increasing as the vision in white came into view in all her bridal glory. Her eyes widened in surprise as she saw the man who sat stilly on the bench, waiting for her.

"I didn't actually think that you knew where to meet," Tea said to him, smiling weakly, as she stepped slowly towards him. "I was afraid that—"

"What do you have to be afraid of? That I'd miss your message and leave you here to urinate by yourself?" he replied dryly. "And here I thought you knew me so well..."

"I thought so too. And then you show up at my wedding when I expected you not to." She took off her gloves, patting her moist forehead gently, her cheeks flushing. "Why did you, Seto?"

"You sent me an invitation," Seto said coolly, getting up to face her but still keeping enough distance between them. "How could I refuse?"

"I thought you would."

"Even Koyamada said the same thing," Seto replied, irritated. Was he truly so unwanted?

"She has her own reasons for not wanting you to to come. They're actually quite trivial, compared to ours."

"That's based on perspective, isn't it?" he said indifferently. "But it doesn't matter to me. The least I could do for you was show up at your wedding to...Yuugi." His voice held nothing but contempt for the last word.

"Don't you dare insult him," Tea threatened, glaring at him. "Especially now, since I am his wife!"

"Which is still amazing to me."

"It shouldn't be," she said softly, but in a strong voice. "After all that's happened, it shouldn't be a surprise at all!"

"I think it is. You're confining your life to a man who will never be more than a child!"

Her eyes flashed with anger. "As opposed to _you_, who substitutes a computer for his social life?"

"Raise one extra, fussy kid or never go out in my life?" Seto pretended to muse. "I think the answer is quite obvious."

"Seto, stop it," Tea pleaded, and for once, he relented, as they glared evenly into each other's furiously intense blue eyes. For a moment, both were silent, but then Tea decided to break the silence. "This is getting nowhere."

"Calling me up here was a waste of both our times," he replied shortly, fury rising at her idiocy. "What were you thinking? That our problems would suddenly go away if we brought them up again?"

"I was thinking that I could come up here and tell you that it will never, ever work out between us!"

"I already have solved that problem on my own, Gardner. So tell me...is it that _you_ haven't forgotten about _me_?"

"What? No!" she protested, glaring at him again. "Seto, I'm _married _to _Yuugi_, for God's sake, how can you say something like that?"

"Which one of us called the other up here, Tea?" he asked coldly, staring her down. "Which one of us brought up the past?"

"I did it because I wanted to solve them, Seto!" She was close to exploding. "I did them so we could end them and then forget them!"

"It's too bad all your efforts went to waste."

"They didn't go to waste, Seto," she breathed coldly, regaining control of herself. "I saw your expression this afternoon. You have to move on, Seto. Please."

"I will do what I want," he replied icily, trying to hide the sting of her comment. So she had proved once again that she was more perceptive than she let on. "My world doesn't revolve around you anymore."

"Does it revolve around the past, then?" she asked quietly, almost inaudibly. "Because you know it's over."

"It's never over, Tea, and you've just proved it today."

"Yes," she said firmly, turning around to head down the stairs so he couldn't see the lone tear threatening to fall. "It is."

* * *

_Replies_.

**JustJos16: **Thanks! A little more is revealed in this chapter. I hope you enjoy it!

**Lady-Wicca666:** Here is more...sorry for the long wait! Enjoy!

**Sakura Takanouchi:** I couldn't wait to see what would happen at the wedding too :P Hope this doesn't disappoint!

**potter-me-:** That's okay, crazy is good! I really loved your review—it made me laugh like a dum-dum. She is different, is she? In my head, Lorraine is in her mid-twenties, so she's not completely ditzy or immature, which makes her a joy to write. Thanks for leaving a comment! I hope you enjoy the chapter!

**dancers of the night:** I've updated! Oh, who won last week? I wish I knew...no MTV here :( Oh, well. I hope you like this chapter!

**Journey Maker:** Thanks for reviewing. I'm really glad you love it :) Enjoy!

**V-Recorder: **Yeah, I thought so too...until I realized he doesn't go ballistic as often as we would all like him to. Bummer :( Well, still, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

-xxx-

**Author's Note: **This chapter was fun...difficult, but fun :) The dress was awesome, but I kind of copied what David's Bridal said about it :P If you want to see it, just tell me and I'll send the link! Thanks so much for reading. Please tell me what you thought!


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh.

Thanks to Azena Kira for beta-ing this chapter for me, and **Thomas**, though you'll never see this, for giving me such detailed descriptions of how the male mind works.

And also, thanks to **Sakura Takanouchi** for taking the time to give me such awesome constructive crit! I have gone back and edited the ending just a bit.

Enjoy!

* * *

After Tea fled down the stairs, Seto stumbled back, collapsing on the bench with his head in his hands.

Tea was a fool to think that she could make amends without repercussions. But he wouldn't lie to himself—there had been far too many restless nights where he'd wondered if he could do the same thing...and what would happen if he tried. She had been his first love, his first _real _breakthrough, and he had sworn to himself he would do anything to preserve it.

But when morning came, he banished the thoughts away. In the last few years without her, he had been relatively fine, better than anything he had expected. The sharp pain in his heart, the one that had ached for days on end after their very last fight, had dulled until it disappeared completely. And he'd come to believe that it was better to leave what they had had under wraps, forgotten and abandoned. Dragging them out, especially in circumstances like this, was crazy. Tea had always had too little sense and too much heart.

Even so, he was secretly relieved. With a relationship and break-up as messy as theirs, closure was hard to come by. But now, he had it, and he didn't even have to initiate it. And after all she had done and claimed, and even though her name was now Mrs. Yuugi Motou, it was clear that she was not yet over him. That was enough for a light smirk to tug at the corner of his lips. As he got up from his seat and headed down the stairs, he could not claim the same feeling.

Because now, he was absolutely convinced, that he was finished with her.

* * *

Outside, the night had finally settled. A light, salty breeze of the sea drifted past, almost unnoticed. Brilliant stars twinkled in the sky, only outshone by the white and red paper lanterns that hung on strings all around to illuminate the darkness in an elegant glow. Everyone had flocked to the beach to dance barefoot in the soft sand near the speakers, where loud hip-hop and dance music was still being blasted. Either that, or they had camped around the bonfire, sitting near a crackling fire toasting marshmallows and making s'mores with the goodies that had been laid out on the tray not too far away.

Lorraine, though she loved to have fun and dance herself, had distanced herself away. She sat alone on the patio, hidden in the shadows, at one of the tables closest to the edge of the wide dining area, one slim hand swirling a flute of champagne and a faraway glaze in her eyes, as if her thoughts were too distracting to let her live in the real world.

But certainly, she did have a lot on her mind.

Though she had done her best to turn a blind eye, the earlier exchange of glances between Seto and Tea had not escaped her. At first, she hadn't wanted to intrude, but the look of desperation on Tea's face as she was swarmed by women in pretty dresses made Lorraine relent. Rather skillfully, Lorraine thought, she'd herded Tea and all the women into the restaurant, played a little game of pretend with Tea, and then literally pushed all the women out. After all that, Lorraine waited at the bar, her arms crossed and eyes focused on the staircase for Tea's return.

"Everything okay?" Lorraine asked gingerly, when Tea, at long last, descended down the stairs. She mentally smacked herself; that was a stupid question to ask. Tea's upset expression was enough to answer that question.

_Well, someone's gotta say something_, she chided herself. A closer look told Lorraine that there were droplets threatening to fall from the usually vibrant blue eyes. She reached out to touch Tea's arm gently.

Tea nodded, gently dabbing the back of her wrist near her eyes. "Yeah...fine, Lorrie," she tried to say firmly, but her voice cracked. She bit her lip and looked away, closing her eyes in an attempt to block tears. Lorraine, feeling a sudden pang of crushing sadness for Tea, embraced her friend tightly, trying to comfort her.

"It's okay, Tea..." she murmured quietly, rubbing Tea's back soothingly. "He's nothing..."

"I know," Tea answered quietly, almost inaudible, leaning her forehead down on Lorraine's shoulder. "I just thought that...he would have changed by now. That maybe...we could...still be...friends."

"He won't change," Lorraine said in the gentlest tone she could manage, although, even to her ears, it sounded grim. Slowly, she released Tea. "He's not that kind of person..."

"I thought I could change him. I thought I could be the one to make it different."

"But he didn't. And now, you're married to a different man, one that loves you more than life itself who would never put you through such trauma," Lorraine reminded her kindly. She paused. "Even if that does sound incredibly corny."

Tea hiccuped a laugh. "I know...but—"

"It's hard to make everyone happy."

"Doesn't mean I can't try."

A stream of counter-arguments had then flooded Lorraine's mind, but she bit them back. Where was Tea coming up with these ideas? In a moment of pure nosiness, she would have given anything to know.

But instead, she let out the smallest of sighs, feeling inept for not being able to sympathize with Tea more.

"Whatever, Tea," she said, deciding defeat was probably best for the moment. She glanced out at the wedding reception through the windows, and then gave Tea a small smile. "But I do think it is time to go. Your wedding party is waiting for you."

"Okay," Tea said quietly, complying like a little child. "I hope you never have these problems with love, Lorraine," she mumbled, still visibly hurt. Lorraine gave a short laugh, and then firmly pushed Tea out of the restaurant, never letting her know how much that last word bothered her.

Love.

Now that she really stopped to think about it, Lorraine realized that that had just been one of the few times _her_ own love life had ever been brought up between them. Ever since she had really gotten to know Tea, she discovered all the problems that the ballerina faced in her relationship. The grief Seto Kaiba impaled on the poor girl seemed endless.

The highs were incredibly high, but the lows didn't make any of it seem worthwhile at all.

She hadn't known Seto Kaiba personally back then, but Lorraine remembered vividly all the times she wanted to push him in front of a public bus just so that he would disappear and she could get an extra hour of sleep. It was lucky then, perhaps for both, when Tea packed up her belongings and troubles to bring them across the continental United States to New York City, where she had been invited to be a principal dancer at one of the city's most prestigious dance companies. And although the apartment was lonely after Tea left, Lorraine couldn't help but feel secretly thankful that she didn't have to deal with Kaiba and Tea's crap anymore.

But Tea and Lorraine had kept in touch and, before she knew it, Tea was no longer the sad, depressed little girl that Seto Kaiba's influence had molded her to become. Tea was bright and lively, with that same sparkle that had been in her sapphire blue eyes when Lorraine had first met her.

_It was Yuugi_, thought Lorraine drowsily as she continued to swirl the golden champagne. _He was the one who had set the world right for Tea, when it had previously been thrown askew. _

_God, I love being poetic._

But still, she had to wonder...was it _really_ what Tea wanted? It seemed at first that Tea had really wanted and lived for the amazing and funny-haired Yuugi, but it wasn't long before Lorraine started thinking she was seeing cracks in Tea's flawless facade.

The events of today had only confirmed conflicts Lorraine knew Tea didn't want to face. A twinge of resentment prickled at her. It was like Tea wanted _everything..._she just _wasn't_ content with all the beautiful things she already had and truly needed.

Lorraine sighed, downing her glass of champagne in one gulp. It was flat and sour in her mouth, but she hardly cared. Time would reveal what Tea really wanted and...until then, Lorraine could only hope she'd have someone to share some sort of happily ever after with.

She reached for the bottle beside her. It was very nearly empty.

"Did you prefer something stronger?" A disdainful voice broke the silence. Lorraine jolted a little at the unexpected sound.

"No. Maybe." A faintly amused smile tweaked at the corners of her lips, but she didn't turn to face him. "Did you have something in mind for me? I was thinking brandy...or maybe whiskey..."

"Tequila," he replied. "Alcohol content is around forty-five, fifty perfect. Perfect for girls like..._you_." The sneer in his voice did not go unheard.

She turned in her seat to face him, one arm resting on the back of the chair. Her movements a little disoriented from the champagne, but when her eyes locked on his without much difficulty, he knew she wasn't totally out yet.

"Could I drink that by the bottle like this?" She held up the glass of champagne. "No. Because I don't want to...die?" She poured the last drops into her flute and raised to her eye level, and then held it out, toasting him. "But please, be my guest, oh-so-wonderful Seto Kaiba, because I hear from Joey that there is this place—"

"I wouldn't even consider going to a place that mutt recommends," he cut her off. Where had people gotten the idea that he drowned his sorrows in cheap liqueur in public places?

"Great, because neither do I." She set down the glass and ran a hand through her long, ebony hair, the waves from the bun earlier tumbling down her back. "A waste of money, don't you think? Besides...I have more important things to do..." She paused suddenly, and Kaiba watched with growing amusement as the look of stupid happiness on her face morphed into one of fury. "Or at least, _did._"

He chuckled humorlessly. "I've been waiting for you to confront me, Koyamada," he said. He leaned his back against one of the tables, crossing his arms. "Did it take you all this time _and _that bottle of champagne for you to regain your courage?"

She pointed a finger at him. He got so much satisfaction from watching her seethe with anger.

"That night you came to dinner, remember? My boss fired me the next day, saying there was a complain about my work ethics _and_ that there was a threat to have me legally removed from the premises!" She got up to her feet, wobbling slightly, but she jabbed his chest with her finger. "It's _not_ funny!" she exclaimed, when Seto raised a hand to rub his chin.

"What a pity," he replied coolly, standing still. "That's such a terrible thing. Taking away what was half your income—"

"You. Owe. Me." She stepped back, swaying a little bit. Lorraine steadied herself by leaning on the table, breathing heavily.

"And what?" asked Kaiba, bored. "You want my money?"

"I want action."

"I think writing a check constitutes as an action," he replied with a certain laziness, raising an eyebrow.

She gaped. "You threaten to have me fired—no, you threaten to kick me off someone else's property—and now, you're just going to write me a check for an unlimited amount of money that I can decide upon? When did I ever ask for your money?"

"Did you really think I would freely offer money to you, some random girl that I keep meeting at the weirdest times?" he questioned icily. "You're more dense than I thought, and I was _already_ giving you the benefit of the doubt."

She stared at him blankly. "Fine, you win," she muttered, looking away. "But you still owe me."

"Keep dreaming. I'm doing nothing for you."

She crossed her arms, tilting her head to a side. When she said nothing for a full minute, Kaiba wondered if she'd finally lost it. Champagne wasn't strong enough for someone to get really drunk on, but maybe this girl didn't even have a tolerance for alcohol to begin with. The staring contest she was initiating was beginning to get creepy.

"You're the CEO of a big company, right?" she asked suddenly, with a certain familiar invigorated brightness in her eyes. "It's a position you've been trained for since you were really young, so you must have good qualifications and skills..." She drifted off, suddenly becoming very thoughtful after his successful insult.

"I was honestly beginning to think you were simply out of it," he replied silkily, watching her as her eyes grew glazed and faraway. "Don't tell me that you're actually moronic."

But she heard nothing. The alcohol from the champagne had already lightened her mood and raised her recklessness. An idea came to her, one so simple and so wonderful that she could have smacked herself for not suggesting it earlier. The sudden light that invaded her expression grew, until she was practically jumpy with excitement.

It was unnerving.

"I have the perfect solution!" she exclaimed with exuberant brightness. She felt exhilarated, and so thrilled that she could barely contain herself.

"Koyamada—"

"No! Don't talk! Because if I speak fast enough, you'll be forced to do what I want and then I'll be happy!" she cut him off, still roused by excitement from her sudden idea. Before she could even think about what she was saying, the words started pouring out like a waterfall, uncontrolled by anything. "Seto, you're good at all this business stuff, right? So help me study for finals! You already know everything of the sort! You can just tell me all the main points and everything! Come over to my place and help me! Please! I don't want to fail!"

His azure blue eyes had only widened in shock and his whole face went slack. Where on earth had she come up with such a deranged idea? And, on top of all that, she truly expected him to give in so easily with a simple yes and dance away?

"There is no way—"

"Great! I'll see you at the coffee shop at eight on Monday night, and then we'll go to my place, okay? Bye, Seto!" she cut him off breathlessly, and, before he could finish voicing his outrage, she had grabbed her white clutch off the table and bounded away, her thin heels thumping against the dull wood as she ran down the steps to the beach.

And then, he watched her trip and tumble into the sand, only to be picked up by one of the blonde bridesmaids, who dusted her off and dragged her roughly by the arm to the bonfire.

Seto could just barely keep a chuckle. At first, he had been outraged and wanted to know exactly what sort of mess her brain was, but now that he knew she was inebriated, there wasn't much to discover.

He got to his feet slowly, unwilling to stay at the wedding any longer. Quickly, he hurried away down the ramp to the parking lot, where his sleek black car was waiting for him. He jammed his key into the ignition, satisfied with his engine answered immediately with a soft hum. Mokuba could get a ride home from Roland.

As he sped away from the parking lot, it wasn't the episode with Tea that demanded his attention, but the amusing incident with that Koyamada girl. She wanted something in return from him?

_Well then_, he thought to himself wryly, the corner of his lip tugging at a smirk as he kept his eyes firmly on the dark road.

_She shouldn't be denied._

* * *

_Replies._

**Lady-Wicca666:** I'm so sorry that this chapter took so long, but I hope it's still satisfactory!

**dancers of the night: **Yes, he should. But he's not. Boo :( ROFL, well, I hope you still enjoy! Thanks for being an awesome friend :D

**V recorder: **I don't know how good this is but hopefully, it's okay. Thanks for saying that—it's definitely my dream to be published one day...if I ever get something good enough -.- Haha well, please enjoy!

**Sakura Takanouchi:** I've said this before and I'll say it again: _thank you. _All of your criticism is helping me become a better writer :) I hope you enjoy!

**moogle in paradaisu:** Definitely an "o dear" moment! :) Please enjoy!

**RayneLestare07:** I'm so glad you're still enjoying this story, even if Seto/Tea isn't your cup of tea. Please enjoy this story as well!

**SinDRegrets911:** Thanks! I just didn't want this story moving too quickly. Hope you enjoy :D

**AKA . Girl:** Thanks very much for your kind words. I'm so glad you enjoyed it, even though there were parts you didn't like as much. Internal conflicts are what make a character interesting :) Hope you like!

**Silver Fantasy:** I'll update...now! :D Haha, Seto is quite difficult, and I honestly don't think I've got him down yet. Your Seto is definitely one of my inspirations :) Hope you enjoy!

Also, a gigantic thanks to **JustJos16 and potter-me-** for your reviews! I hadn't been so busy when I got to yours. I hope you enjoy it too!

-xxx-

**Author's Note: **Yeah...Lorraine is just a weird drunk. I actually abstain from alcohol for personal (can't stand the smell) and religious reasons, so...I don't really know what drunks act like :P But I do hope you like this revised version of the chapter! Please leave a review! I'd love to hear anything you have to say :)


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh.

I just wanted to say thanks to all the people who have favorited this story and/or alerted it, as well as give a gigantic hug to those who have taken the time to leave a review. The feedback and support you guys give me is so amazing and I can _never_ thank you enough!

Oh, and also, I suggest re-reading Chapter Six—I've edited whole thing to make it better :D Other than that, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

* * *

"You know he's not going to come."

"I know."

"And that you made a huge fool out of yourself in front of one of the most powerful men in the world."

"Mmhmm…"

"_And_ that Tea will kill you once she finds out what you've done?"

"Okay, I got it, Mai!" Lorraine slammed down the coffee cup she'd been filling, the boiling liquid splashing all over her hand, but Lorraine ignored the pain as she glared at the blonde. "Are you done yet?"

"Miss…" stammered the customer with wide eyes. He raised his hand meekly. "Was that…mine?"

Lorraine flashed him a sardonic smile, one so poisonously saccharine that it matched the hostile, exasperated glare in her eyes. "I'll make you a fresh cup, sir," she told him coolly, tossing the ruined cup into the trash. She ran her flushed hand under the icy water of the sink, trying not to wince at the pain.

"So when did you decide to become my personal doomsday prophet, Mai?" she continued sarcastically as she dried her hands gently on a towel.

Mai shrugged carelessly, raising a mug to her glossy lips as she watched Lorraine grab a new coffee cup. "I'm making up for the logic you seem to be lacking. Is that so terrible an obligation?"

"Don't go making yourself a saint." Loraine jammed the palm of her hand onto the lever, releasing a few shots of espresso syrup with unnecessary power. "Come on. Admit it. You just want to say, '_Lorraine, you stupid idiot_'."

Mai smirked. Lorraine's scowl only deepened.

_Calm down_, she warned herself wryly as she filled the cup with coffee once more._ Before you do something stupid. Again. _

She stirred the coffee briefly, before capping it and passing it along to the man, the smile on her face no more sincerely hospitable than her last. There was a look of terror on his face as he fumbled around in his pockets for some spare change, and then dashed out of the café.

"And that's exactly the effect I have on men," muttered Lorraine darkly to herself. "They always run away."

Mai raised her cup again to hide her widening grin. One malevolent glare from Lorraine was enough to make her sober immediately.

"Well, I'm never short of entertainment whenever you're around," exhaled Mai as she stretched out her arms. Then she leaned forward, tucking her fist below her chin. "Tea was so lucky to have lived with you."

"We dealt with her troubles, not mine. And I'd invite you to be my roommate, Mai, but I don't need your crap."

The blonde snickered. "My shit is nothing compared to yours. But hey, Lorrie, forget about all that. Did you tell her?"

"No. I didn't have the urge to die last week." Lorraine inspected her burned hand. The reddening had lessened, but it was beginning to swell. She finally glanced back up, an annoyed look on her face. "It was hard enough telling you!"

"Afraid of Big Bad Tea's wrath?"

"I'd really appreciate it if my apartment building wasn't huffed and puffed down. Insurance and damage costs are things I really can't pay for at the moment. I'd be broke for the rest of my life." Lorraine paused, the guilt creeping in. She sighed. "Okay, so she's not _that_ bad…"

Mai smiled, her first sincere one all afternoon. "Depends on the time of day, honey. Not everyone can be so wonderful all the time."

"And aren't you the prime example of that?" Lorraine rubbed her forehead with the back of her wrist. "Does that mean I should wait to tell her?"

"Well, what does your gut say?"

"That I was a really stupid jerk and that I should have left him alone," Lorraine muttered, her cheeks burning. "Well okay, so _he_ appeared out of nowhere. Does that mean I get points?"

"No, that means you lose double. You should have run the hell out of there." Mai paused. "And, you know, _maybe_ you shouldn't have been drinking. You know your tolerance isn't all that great."

"I definitely need a better conscience then. I guess that _is_ why you exist." Lorraine turned away to grab towel off the counter to clean up the spill. Talking to Mai was beginning to make her feel even more like crap.

She looked up for a moment, glancing out the long panes of glass of the coffee shop. It was raining like mad outside, and she kept seeing people shuffling by magazines over their heads because they hadn't counted on such a heavy downpour. Inside the safe haven of the café, a couple of the usual patrons sat in their favorite red armchairs, nursing a drink and a good book or newspaper. A bunch of students sat at the tables, hunched over their laptops, eyes glued to the screens and their coffee lying cold and forgotten beside them.

It was so peaceful. On any other day, Lorraine would have savored it. But now, she was so upset that there was a weird feeling in her stomach and a lightness in her head. Enjoying the restfulness of the café was unimaginable.

Suddenly, the door to the café was pushed open, a gust of chilly air blasting through the warm café. Everyone was jerked out of their comfy niche, some even tearing themselves away to glare at the newcomer. But he was too wet and too flustered to realize that at that moment, he was the most hated person in the coffee shop.

Out of instinct, Lorraine ducked down and peeked over the coffee machines. Was it him? The figure looked right…tall…dressed in a pristine rain coat…

But as he came closer and looked up, Lorraine felt her heart drop. Instead of the scathing cerulean blue eyes she had been so tensely anticipating, they were an ordinary muddy brown, shielded behind a pair of wire rim glasses. And his shoulders and girth were a little too broad to be the lean Seto Kaiba she remembered.

The man made his way to the counter in a stately, pompous fashion, his eyes focused only ahead. Water dripped off of him everywhere, causing Lorraine to immediately feel antagonistic towards him. Mai caught the disparaging glare on her face and snickered.

"Don't be so OCD," she chided her. "The next barista…what's her name? Hinako? She'll clean it up, right?"

"Yeah, I guess…" Lorraine muttered, but it looked like her right eye was twitching. "Dude, it took me ten minutes to mop that."

"Then this really is a tragedy of epic proportions," Mai said sarcastically.

"Excuse me," said the man as he stepped before the register. He smiled benignly at Lorraine, causing her to shudder. He had to be in his late thirties, early forties at the latest. "Are you Lorraine Koyamada?"

_Aren't you the one wearing glasses?_ She wanted to throw at him. There was a tacky name tag pinned to her chest, for crying out loud. But she plastered a smile on her face and nodded anyway.

"Yes, that's me," she said, trying not to sound clipped. "Why?" she stopped, suddenly suspicious. Her eyes narrowed and she placed one hand akimbo. "If you live on the second floor and you're here to bother me about the leakage, I can't help you, okay? Because I'm on the first floor, and you know what, I'm tired of being blamed—"

But the man continued to smile that same creepy benevolently understanding smile that made Lorraine take a small step back.

"My name is Dr. Shinsuke Takeshiro," said the man with an air of importance as he drawled his name. "Mr. Seto Kaiba sent me, informing me that there was a person in this café in great need of my services."

Lorraine's eyebrows drew together. "Huh?" Her eyes narrowed until they were practically slits. "What exactly can you offer me, _Dr_. Takeshiro? Wait, hold up. Who's paying?"

Out of the corner of her eye, Lorraine thought she saw Mai roll her eyes.

"Mr. Kaiba has agreed to take up the expenses," said Dr. Takeshiro, before continuing. "But, as I was saying, I am a board certified psychiatrist." He inclined his head, perhaps what he felt to be a modest gesture. He continued to smile, reminding Lorraine of the way adults smiled at particularly unruly children. "Here is my card. I would show you all my credentials, but they are, at the moment, in my office and I didn't want to bring them in the rain. Perhaps you need some time to process this? I am patient, do not worry—"

"WHAT?" Lorraine exploded, her eyes fuming as she leaned in until she was inches away from the man's eyes. "Look here, buddy, I do NOT need—"

"I understand that you have some anger management issues, as well as a tendency to harass celebrities." The man whipped out his iPhone and began scrolling through his notes. "If you please, miss—"

"And I can see that you missed that course in English Composition on '_citing sources correctly'_," snapped Lorraine. Her hands curled into fists.

"You must learn to channel your anger through positive actions," said Dr. Takeshiro, but this time, there was a touch of forced kindness in his voice. "Do not worry, I can help you—"

Lorraine mocked a grin. "Thanks so much for the life lessons, but I don't need _anything_ you're selling. I'm perfectly fine, _sane_, and normal. That girl—" She pointed towards Mai, who looked ready to snicker. "—helps me enough. And as for '_positive actions_'," Lorraine leaned foward, until she was inches away from him. "You want to know what I do? I condemn people to premature deaths! And you know what? You're next, little man!" She practically shouted her last sentence into the man's ear.

Dr. Takeshiro barely blinked. A couple of people glanced up at their barista, confused.

"Has delusions of bringing justice to people, like _Saw_," muttered the man as he typed onto his phone with his fingers. He paused, and looked up. "Having friends you can rely on is a great gift, my dear, but I think what you need is _professional_ assistance. Do not think that you cannot do anything about your condition, Miss Koyamada. I can assure you that you are hardly unique, and that there are those who have been in your exact place before."

"Oh great, because that was really keeping me up all night." Lorraine's words dripped sarcasm. This was really becoming ridiculous. She glanced at Mai, who still looked like she was trying not to laugh. "You say Kaiba sent you?" she asked suddenly, her voice carefully monitored. "Fine. Then I need to talk to him."

Mai's eyes widened. "You're not seriously going to KaibaCorp. Not in this weather, and not right now!"

"Uh, yes Mai, I am." Lorraine threw off her apron and ran into the backroom to hang it up. She snatched up her black raincoat and then hurried back out, throwing it on hastily. She searched her pockets for a hair tie, and then collected her long ebony hair into a messy bun. "Come on. The rain's not that bad."

"Acts impulsively without thinking," the doctor muttered under his breath. Lorraine crossed her arms, rolling her eyes.

"And you, Dr. Takeshiro, can kindly get out of my way before I throw the damn coffee machine at you." She made her way past her, but Mai hopped off her stool and stepped in front of her, blocking her path.

"For once, just listen to the stranger, Lorrie. Don't act so spontaneously. Calm—"

But Lorraine just pushed Mai out of her way and dashed out of the coffee shop into the pouring rain. She sprinted through the streets, shoving people out of her way. Some jostled back, but she was gone before they could really give her a piece of their mind. Periodically, she glanced back up at the sky, at the KaibaCorp building that towered over all the other skyscrapers in the Domino area. It really wasn't too far from the coffee shop, but being drenched by the rain made her feel like it was miles away.

She bolted across the street, ignoring the cars that blared their horns and flashed their lights at her. The automatic glass doors to the building opened just as she stepped onto the mat and she charged in, scanning the large foyer she'd run into. Surprisingly, it was empty of people, even though the doors had opened for her. There was no one sitting at the reception desk, or even a guard standing stationary at the entrance.

"So he's probably expecting me," muttered Lorraine as she found the elevator and pressing the up arrow.

_Ding. _The elevator arrived promptly, the glass cylindrical doors sliding open for her. She quickly got in, her legs feeling a little wobbly when she looked down. The whole contraption was made of glass. Lorraine cursed the damn guy for being so modern.

She pushed away the vertigo and glanced over at the rows of buttons, each one emblazoned with a floor number. But she didn't have search for the one that she needed—there was a special button shaped into an intricate Blue-Eyes White Dragon.

"Yeah, that's obviously the one." She stabbed the button with her thumb. The doors closed again, and before she knew it, the cylinder rocketed upward at a blazing speed. She fell back against the metal railing, clutching it for life. She could feel her stomach rising up into her chest and up to her throat.

When the doors finally opened and the pleasant female voice announced that she had reached the top floor, Lorraine stumbled out, her legs shaky. She leaned against the stable wall, taking deep breaths to steady herself.

"God, I don't want to do that again," she murmured, closing her eyes. When she felt fine enough, she headed down the hall, until she came to an expansive waiting room and a pair of gleaming mahogany doors. Without even hesitating, she burst through.

Two pairs of eyes swiveled around to see her.

"I can see that you have another arrangement, Mr. Kaiba," said the woman, almost sneering. She tucked a strand of thick red hair behind her ear and scrutinized Lorraine through her verdant, cat-like green eyes. She dropped the stack of papers she'd been holding onto Kaiba's mahogany desk and got up, smoothing the skirt of her three piece suit. "Perhaps I should come another time."

"Ms. Kingsley, you know I do not make additional appointments," said Kaiba, his voice cool but, Lorraine noted, with far more civility than when he was speaking to _her. _But to her complete surprise, he granted her an icy, warning smile. "But I'm sure my guest understands the importance of our business. She will not object to waiting outside for us, will she?"

All three of them knew that Kaiba had verbally slapped her, but she refused to give him the satisfaction of winning. "I'll wait patiently," said Lorraine through gritted teeth. She turned and slammed the door shut.

The waiting room had not even the tinkling of elevator music, so Lorraine was left alone to her own, fuming thoughts. The long trek from the café to the buildling, and then the heart-wrenching ride up the elevator had calmed her a little bit, but it had also snatched from her the reckless bravado that she needed to confront Kaiba. She wandered around the room, but could find nothing of interest to pass the time.

The lights above her head flickered precariously, and Lorraine glanced up. The rain was a lot stronger than she'd first thought.

Suddenly, the door to his office opened, and the sultry businesswoman stepped out. There was a triumphant gleam to her eyes when she saw Lorraine still standing the room.

"We both know why you're here," said the woman as she closed the door behind her with a firm hand. "So let me give you some advice. If you want to win even a night with this man, you'd best be waiting at his house, wearing far less than that." She glanced up and down at Lorraine again.

Lorraine bristled. "I'm not a call girl. I'm just here to talk to him."

"No, you can trust me," said the woman, dropping her voice to a whisper and clasping Lorraine's hand tightly. She tried to yank her hand out of her grasp, but the lady wouldn't relent. "He'll talk. But not when you're wearing all that." With another cruel smile, the woman let go and brushed past Lorraine and walking down the hall, her heels clicking against the hardwood floor as she left.

Lorraine glared at the woman's back, but opened the door to Kaiba's inner office again, slamming the door behind her to announce her entry.

"Koyamada." Kaiba barely looked up from his desk as he signed his papers. "I'd invite you to sit, but I don't think you'll be here for very long."

"Yeah, I don't plan on spending the night, so don't get any ideas," snapped Lorraine, still offended by that woman. She watched him for his reaction, but he barely responded.

"Just get to the point, Koyamada," he said brusquely, his pen still moving as he signed his signature. "I don't have all night."

"Fine." Lorraine walked forward, and then slammed both palms on his desk. "You. Sent. Me. A. Freaking. _Psychiatrist_?"

He finally deigned to look up at her. "Give me one reason why that wasn't a smart decision on my part," he said coolly. "You clearly need it. If given the chance, you'd destroy this whole building with that reckless compulsion of yours. Or, maybe, you'd harass the next remotely famous person you saw. If anything, the man could teach you some common courtesy."

Lorraine glowered. "Don't mock me, Kaiba. I'm the one that needs courtesy? You're the one that fired me from my job _and_ tried to send me to a shrink!"

"Dr. Takeshiro is one of the most renowned psychiatrists in Japan. You should feel lucky that I was able to get him on such short notice especially for you."

"_Don't_ tell me how I'm supposed to feel!" Lorraine shouted. She turned away, clenching her hand into her fists. It was silent for a moment in Kaiba's office, but when Lorraine turned back to face the man, her eyes were still blazing with rage.

"That's what this is all about, isn't it?" she asked, breathing heavily. "Control? Power over me? Just because of crazy weird circumstances that threw me in your way? Was it really necessary to go to all this trouble to reduce me to nothing?"

"Koyamada—"

"God, I'm just so tired of you!" she was shouting again. "So you know what, _fine_! I'll just give you what you want! I'll take the blame for everything, okay? I take the damn blame, for all the things that have happened, for all the things that are out of my control, and for all the things you obviously blame me for! Alright? I'm _sorry_! So will you leave me alone now? Will you just _stop_ harassing me?"

She broke off, breathing heavily for a moment, feeling an ache in her throat from all the yelling. The lights flickered again.

"I bet you're going to blame me for that too," she went on, scoffing. The hatred she held for him was immeasurable. "So fine, whatever! I don't care. Do whatever you want, but from now on, keep me out of it!"

And with that, she stormed out of his office, slamming the door of his office behind her. The lights trembled again, spazzing a little, until they died completely, leaving her in darkness. Still, she hurried through the floor of the building, using her hands to touch the walls. It felt like she had been running forever until her fingers smashed against the cold glass of the elevator.

She pressed a button. But there was nothing.

"God…this really only could happen to me…" she slumped against the wall, running a hand through her damp-ish hair. She reached into her pocket for her phone and flipped it open. It wasn't dead, but in her current situation, stuck on the top floor of the KaibaCorp building with no electricity, she didn't think anyone could help her.

Suddenly, she heard the sound of brisk footsteps, heading in her direction. She held in her groan.

"Get up off the ground, Koyamada." His voice was cold and grating.

"Get away from me," she retorted. "I don't want to even be near you."

"That would be difficult, seeing as you're in my building and the power's out." He stood, towering over her. Lorraine raised a hand to her throbbing temple, but didn't move.

"I can try the fire escape," she said wearily.

"With your luck, you'd slip and fall."

"Your consideration for me is so touching. I think I can die happy now."

She could hear him sigh, exasperated, and then there was a shuffle of movement as he leaned down to grip her hand.

"Ow!" she shrieked, yanking her hand back. She leaped off the ground and drew back, away from him. "Don't touch me!"

"How else can I be sure you're going to follow me?" he retorted, but didn't make a move closer to her.

Lorraine rolled her eyes, even though she knew he couldn't see it. "Then grab my other hand!"

"What's wrong with that one?"

"I freaking burned it, that's what!"

He sighed explosively again. "Stop complaining," he muttered, reaching again in the same direction but instead, he clasped onto her wrist firmly. "Come on. Follow me."

* * *

_Replies._

**JustJos16: **Woah girl...it's been such a long time since we last talked! :( Haha well, I understand what you meant, and I've edited the ending accordingly. I really agree with what you said, so thanks so much for the awesome feedback! Hope you enjoy this chapter!**  
**

**Sakura Takanouchi: **Stuff always seems to get in the way of updating, huh? :P I totally agree with the concrit that you said and am totally ecstatic that you took the time to write such a constructive review. I went back and edited the ending with all of your feedback in mind, so I hope it's better :D Thanks so much again for the review! Hope you liked the chapter!**  
**

**Ivory Goddess of Ebony Heart:** Hm...I agree with all the things you have said, and I think you have a point. I guess a lot of his motives aren't coming through clearly on my part... :( I'm definitely going to keep all that you've said in mind as I continue writing the next chapters! Thanks for the review :D I hope you enjoy this chapter!

**dancers of the night:** *smacks head* I honestly cannot believe that I forgot you :( Please forgive me! I think ASAP for me = a year. That's bad, isn't it? Well, in any case, I hope you enjoyed this chapter :D

**potter-me-: **:D TYVM! Sorry that it's taken so long to give you the next chapter, but still, it's here! :) Hope you enjoy!**  
**

**SinDRegrets911: **I did try to keep the paragraphs explaining the back story as succinct and short as possible. However, I also did re-edit those paragraphs, so maybe now, it's a little more clearer :) Thanks for reviewing! Hope you enjoy!**  
**

**Pharaoh'sJewel: **Aw, you're making me grin like an idiot :D I love Lorraine too...thanks for reviewing! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!**  
**

**xXDeadly . RoseXx: **Haha, you can say anything you feel like sayin' :) I won't hold anything against you! I personally don't have anything against Tea...she's just the antagonist of this story because I needed conflict and she was closest :P And yeah, Seto's mean :P Thanks for the review! I hope you like the chapter!**  
**

**Silver Fantasy: **I was fifteen when I wrote the first six chapters of this story and now, two years later, I can't help but C R I N G E at some of the things that I wrote too :D We're in the same club. I'm thinking that this story is really different from any of my others in that it really required me to mature a little bit before I could tackle the issues adequately. I still don't know if I'm capable (and probably won't know for a while) but I really love the challenges this story poses. Thanks for such a comprehensive review; I will definitely keep all those things in mind as I continue writing the story. I hope you enjoy this chapter! :)

-xxx-

**Author's Note: **I know you guys are wondering..._why_ did Seto help her? _Why _didn't he just leave her there until he turned on the back-up generator so that she leave alone? And why the heck was there no tutoring session? Do I even have an answer? Or was I just being crazy? You can decide, if you so wish :D  
Anyway, this chapter was a freaking _beast _to write. In these last two years, it's been through countless revisions, line edits, and complete rehauls before it became what it is now. Even now, I'm sitting in my grandparent's apartment in total doubt, just wondering if I screwed up or if I _really_ screwed up -.- After working on this for four hours, I'm honestly about to fall over, so if I made any glaring mistakes, please don't hesitate to tell me!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read it :) I really am so grateful for every hit that this story has ever gotten :D Please leave a review!


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh.

* * *

She couldn't see at all in the darkness.

But somehow, he could. She suspected it was because he had most likely designed the whole building himself.

So she let herself, just for the moment, give up control of her limbs. She focused instead on staying on her feet so that she could follow him through the meandering corridors without tripping. Her heart raced wildly in her chest, but she willed herself not to lose her calm. The last thing she needed was for Kaiba to make comments about her endurance.

She pressed her free hand against the ache beneath her rib cage, wincing. _He probably won't_, she told herself. The man gripping her hand in his was quiet and focused, stopping for no one and nothing in that maze of blackened hallways and bends. Whoever he was, he wasn't the man who had dated Tea all those years ago and tormented her in the last few weeks.

Finally, the pain became too much.

"Wait, wait," she choked out. She tried to pull him back a little bit, but then collapsed right where she stood, half-dragging him down with her.

"What?" Kaiba asked. It didn't sound like a snap, and she didn't feel so bad about stopping.

She dragged herself to her feet and put out her hands to feel for the wall. She leaned against it, trying to catch her breath. "I'm tired," she breathed, still clutching her side. "How much longer?"

"Not much," replied Kaiba, actually civil. "So come on."

There was a rustle of his shirt as he bent down towards her. She shrank away, cradling her injured hand to her chest.

"I can't have you getting lost," he said, the exasperation creeping in. "Give me your hand, _please_."

"Just leave me here until morning."

"The last thing I need is a lawsuit claiming negligence."

"I promise not to press charges."

"Not tempted."

Her glare was as fierce as she could make it in the dark. She hoped her hatred emanated off her in waves. "You're one son of a bitch, you know that?"

"And you are not the first to tell me." His hand found hers and pulled her away from the wall. "Come on," he said, somehow still civil. She was tired, but she could still marvel at this miracle. "We're almost there."

* * *

Mai was just about to settle down in front of the television with a freshly popped bag of popcorn when the phone rang. She set down the bowl on the coffee table with a sigh, then reached over the couch for the phone.

"Yes?" She cradled it between her shoulder and ear as she reached out for her popcorn.

"I'm home."

Mai shot to her feet, popcorn forgotten. "What? Really? Since when? Oh my god, Lorrie, are you okay?"

"I just got home," came the measured voice on the other line. "I'm perfectly fine."

Mai started pacing back and forth in her small living room. "Good. Did that jerk try anything?"

"You mean like lock me up in that tower of a building and feed me rat poison for food?"

Mai closed her eyes, and resisted the sigh. "Sure. Whatever."

"Then no," replied Lorraine. "He just basically held my hand and let me straight to the emergency elevator."

Mai blinked. "No, he didn't," she said with a disbelieving chuckle, twisting one strand of her thick blonde hair around her finger. "You're lying."

"I swear I'm not."

"Then he's the one who needs the psychiatrist, not you," shot Mai, with as much malice as she could muster.

"True," agreed Lorraine, sounding absolutely exhausted. Mai heard a fumble that she guessed must have been Lorraine's head resting against the futon.

They sat in quiet, amiable silence for a moment. Lorraine, who was always ready to give full details on any escapade she'd ever had, was unusually quiet tonight. Mai suspected that there was more to this story that she wasn't getting, but decided that tonight was not the time to be pressing for details.

"Go to bed," she encouraged, flopping back on her own couch. "You're tired. Let's talk again in the morning."

"Okay," came Lorraine's quiet voice. "I'll call you tomorrow, Mai."

And then she was left with dead silence. Mai glanced down at her phone, thumb suspended above the dial pad. It seemed she would call, but then she gently set the phone aside.

She picked up her remote and aimed it at the television.

* * *

Lorraine flung her phone away from her and flipped onto her stomach. She buried her face into her pillow for a few seconds, and when she couldn't breathe, she turned onto her side.

Though she was physically in her own apartment, her mind was back at the darkened KaibaCorp building, trying to make sense of all that had occurred during the power outage. Was it real? Or had it been some sort of psychological mind trick? What if she had followed that psychiatrist bastard's instructions and fallen into some sort of trance…and then experienced that whole ordeal?

Lorraine pinched her arm. She yelped and then rubbed the reddened spot.

_Guess I'm not asleep_, she thought to herself dejectedly. She clutched another pillow to her chest. Against her own will, she was being brought back.

_The darkness of their path grew lighter, but she couldn't tell where the light was coming from. Kaiba turned again, but this time, she was ready for it. After so long in the darkness, she was thankful for any light.  
_

_At the end of the hallway they ran down now was a sort of lobby, with a towering wall of glass from ceiling to floor. __  
_

_Their path was growing lighter, but it wasn't coming from any light bulb that she could see. Kaiba turned again. At the end of the hallway they ran to was a a towering wall of class from ceiling to floor. When they came closer, she saw the streetlamps over the empty parking lot and trees below, the full moon shining above it all.  
_

_They were still on the top floor of the building. _

_"What is this?" asked Lorraine, though she hardly expected an answer. Her eyes adjusted to the luxury of light, and she saw that to her right lay another corridor while to her left, there was an elevator._

_"Your way out," he replied, surprising her once more. He let go of her hand, and then stepped forward. He pushed one single button and the lines around the elevator glowed blue. _

_Instinctively, Lorraine stood back._

_There was a whirring sound that Lorraine couldn't quite place, and then the doors to the elevator opened. This one, unlike the one that she had entered through, was made of stainless steel, and that made her heart rest. She hoped it was slower too._

_"Are you sure that's safe?" she heard herself ask. He scoffed. _

_"It's powered by its own generators. They're separate from the mainframe," he answered, as if she should have known the answer for herself. Just like that, that old, arrogant attitude of his was back. _

_He glanced back at her. "Well?"_

_Because she did not want to weather his comments, she forced her feet to move into the box. _At least_, she reasoned with herself, _any injury or death sustained would be on his hands_. None of it would be her fault._

_He didn't move towards her, so she guessed that it would be her job to push the buttons that would take her to the first floor. Just as her finger drifted towards the button, and he was about to turn away—_

_"Wait!" she called out, her voice louder in the box than out in the hallway. He paused, just so very briefly, one raise of his eyebrow enough to tell her that he was listening, if only for a moment. _

_"I just wanted to say," she said, her voice stronger than the wavering in her heart, "that this is the last time we're going to meet. I'll stop bothering you, if you stop making my life an absolute, miserable hell. Do we have a deal?"_

_Something tweaked at the corner of his lips. "Only if you can uphold your own bargain."_

_He made to turn away again, but her voice rang out. "I mean it, Kaiba! I don't want to see your face again!"_

_"The desire is mutual," he said, stepping forward. "You had better not show up in my life again."_

_And with that, the doors closed shut. _

_She hadn't pressed the button._

As Lorraine pulled out of her memories and back into the present, she was aware of a pain in her stomach. But it wasn't from the exercise, that one had long ago dulled. This on was in the center, an ugly twist that rendered her so physically and mentally exhausted that she wanted nothing more than to sleep and forget.

But she had work. Homework. Job applications. Bills. Utilities. Regular human things that the obviously alien Seto Kaiba probably didn't have to worry about. She pulled a blanket over herself and curled herself into the fetal position. _Tomorrow_, she promised herself. Tonight had been hard enough.

There were some things that were better in the morning.

* * *

**Author's Note: **So...I just realized that it's been nearly two years since I updated...and five since this story was published. Time seriously flies, doesn't it? Jeez...I can't believe it's been so long. Well, the good news is that that I've planned forward a couple of chapters, so those should follow quickly. I'm sorry that this chapter is kind of like filler, but...the next ones should be better! Someone special makes an appearance in the next chapter, so stay tuned...the dialogue is some of my favorite that I've ever written! :)

Thank you to those who reviewed the last chapter. I may not have replied with a response, but know that I am thankful. Please leave a review on your way out and I promise to respond!

Thanks for reading!


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